


No Particular Place To Go

by DeeDeeGee



Category: Fallout (Video Games), Fallout 3
Genre: Gen, Past Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-10
Updated: 2020-01-10
Packaged: 2021-02-27 04:40:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22191202
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DeeDeeGee/pseuds/DeeDeeGee
Summary: It's been three weeks since the Enclave left the Capital Wasteland, and in that time, very little has been seen of Callie Elliot, the Lone Wanderer.  Has she been hiding, or has she just been busy?A short discussion between friends about the loss of their respective parents.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	No Particular Place To Go

It had been three weeks since the Enclave had been driven out of the Capital Wasteland. The purifier, now fully operational, had brought a new set of challenges to the Brotherhood of Steel. For the first time in years, the scribes looked as fatigued as the soldiers as they worked to establish delivery routes and maintenance schedules. Nearby, Rivet City was bustling with new faces, all eager to be close to a fresh water source. The excitement and positivity of it all had so far kept the city relatively peaceful, and while the increased traffic was a strain, the Rivet City security team was handling it as well as could be expected.

Three Dog had more interesting and varied reports as well. New people brought news from a much broader base as travellers and merchants passed through D.C. The radio host was able to expand both his news segments and his album library, which was a relief for his usual listeners, who had grown tired of his limited collection.

Little had been said about the Lone Wanderer. After nearly a year of week-to-week updates and speculation, the last report Three Dog had made detailed the events of Adams Airforce Base, where the Enclave had lost their final battle. Since then, his reports focused on water routes, migrating raider camps, religious sects and Brotherhood strife. The only thing he had to say about the hero from Vault 101 was that ‘the kid deserved a break’. The ‘kid’ was inclined to agree.

After the heroics and the heartbreak, the exciting highs and terrible lows, Callie Elliot was trying her best to take it easy. Even with stimpaks, there were bruises and injuries that needed time to heal, so she took it upon herself to hunker down and get to work on a project she’d been planning since her unexpected trip to Mothership Zeta. 

The Chryslus Corvega she’d brought down with her was in near-perfect condition. Fully-operational nuclear engine, all leather interior, shiny chrome details and a crystal blue paint job that only had a couple of small scratches. Other than the tires, which she’d popped in her first effort to drive it across the wasteland, it was perfect. She’d driven it to a little abandoned garage, and aside from checking into Rivet City now and again, it’s where she’d spent nearly a month. 

As the radio played a song she’d never heard before, Callie sat on top of the back hood near the engine, sanding down a once dangerously sharp edge. She had big plans for her shiny new toy, and had taken it almost completely apart before putting it back together. The first thing she did was saw the roof off. From there, she’d started adjusting and reinforcing the boat-like sedan into something far more dangerous. From over the sound of the tinny guitar, Callie heard voices outside. She slid off the car and took a few quiet steps forward, turning the radio down in hopes to hear more. It wasn’t raiders, no one was yelling, but still she picked up the nearest weapon within reach, a large wrench. After a minute there was a series of knocks on the small door to the side of the garage. Four, then three. Callie wiped her hands on her pants and went to the door, opening it just a crack.

“It’s me.” Butch said to her, looking puzzled at the mostly closed door.

“Yeah, and?” She asked. “Who were you talking to?”

“Uh...” Butch said, before stepping to the side. A few feet back, stood Sarah Lyons in full armor, a neutral expression on her face.

“And you’re what, giving tours?” Callie asked. “I told you I didn’t want anyone to know about this place, least of all-”

“Hey,” Butch said, hissing out his words in a loud whisper. “She was just standing out here when I walked up. What was I supposed to do, man? I just came out to make sure you hadn’t died or whatever, but if you want me to go I’ll go.”

He turned around and Callie stopped him with a touch on the shoulder. “Sorry, I shouldn’t have... oh shit, and you brought food, too.” Callie said, feeling guilty as she eyed the armful of snacks he carried.

“Yeah. I’m a nice guy.” He said sarcastically, pushing past her into the garage. Callie nodded to Sarah, who hadn’t moved. 

“Evening.” Callie called. She’d been dreading this meeting, but knew it had to happen sooner or later.

Sarah blinked at her. “It’s two in the afternoon, Callie.”

Callie took a step outside and squinted up at the sun. “Oh, yeah.” 

Sarah moved to cross her arms, but seemed to think twice, resting one of her hands on her metal plated hip. “I’ve been ordered to investigate the pre-war technology you are keeping in this facility.” She said formally.

Callie took another step away from the garage. “Yeah? And what exactly does this investigation involve?”

Sarah held up a hand. “I’m not here to fight you, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

Callie crossed her arms, still loosely holding her wrench. “Worried isn’t the word I’d use.” She said. The last thing she wanted was to do today was give up her car, especially after all the time she’d spent fixing it up.

“Hey, how ‘bout both of you take it down a notch.” Butch called from the door. “We’re all friends here, right?”

“I hope so.” Callie said. Sarah had always been an ally, a friend, but she was still a part of the Brotherhood, and Callie knew how they were with technology. She kept picturing her car locked in the basement of the citadel gathering dust, or worse, stripped for parts.

Sarah’s expression turned cold. “Look, I’m not here to confiscate anything. I was ordered to investigate, so I’m investigating. And as revered as you are by the Brotherhood, we still have to account for old tech. That’s one of the fundamentals of my job, and it has been for a lot longer than you’ve been around.” She pointed a finger at Callie as she spoke. “And if you think you can just drive a fucking car around and think we wouldn’t notice-”

“Okay, okay.” Callie said, “I get it.” Sarah stopped, but looked no less angry. “So you’re not here to confiscate, huh? Can I get that in writing?”

For a brief second, Sarah looked furious, before she caught the amusement that was creeping up on Callie’s face. She shook her head and smiled. “You’re a real pain in the ass sometimes, you know that?”

From behind them, Butch let out a sigh as Callie laughed. Callie motioned to Sarah to follow her into the garage. “Okay, so it’s not finished yet.” Callie said excitedly. The only other person who had seen it was Butch, and that was nearly a week ago.

“You got the pointy thing on.” Butch said, nodding his approval at the makeshift cow-catcher she’d fashioned to the front end.

Callie smiled, and watched Sarah, gauging her reaction as she circled the vehicle. “I’ve never seen one so intact.” Sarah said, looking from the car to Callie. She almost looked impressed. “Mostly anyway.” She added, with a look to the metal roof which leaned against the back wall. “Why is the roof off? Wouldn’t that make you more vulnerable?”

“Yeah, but it’s easier to shoot out of the side. Plus, I figured if I’m gonna have a car, I should have a convertible, right?”

Sarah nodded, but looked far more interested in the car than what she was saying. She crouched down to inspect the front end. “Why are the tires so blue?”

Callie moved to a table and picked up a tube containing some of the same blue material. “It’s an epoxy. Durable as hell. It keeps the tires from popping.” 

Sarah looked at the tube with interest. “Where did this come from? I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Callie shifted her weight from one foot to the other. “Same place I found the car.” She said, a terse smile on her face. Here we go, she thought. She looked at Butch, and caught him frantically shaking his head at Sarah. When he caught Callie’s eye he shoved his hands into his pockets and leaned against the car like he hadn’t done a thing.

Sarah looked between them suspiciously. “And where did you find the car?”

Callie gave an exaggerated shrug. “Spaceship.” She tried to hold eye contact with Sarah, who was looking blankly at her, but found herself looking away.

“Spaceship.” Sarah repeated. Callie heard Butch sigh. “Care to elaborate?”

Callie stiffened at Sarah’s incredulous tone. “It was right after the purifier. You were still out cold and I went to Megaton to clear my head. On the way back I was uh, abducted.”

Sarah had not moved. “Is this a joke?”

“No.”

“Can anyone else verify your story?”

“Probably not.” Callie said. 

“Are you messing with me? I honestly can’t tell.” 

Callie turned to put a hand on the car. “Yeah, I didn’t think you’d believe me. He sure as hell doesn’t. But it did happen, and it was awesome.” She said firmly.

“Come on, Callie. You can’t drop that kind of information on someone and expect them to accept it right away.” Sarah said.

Callie knew Sarah wasn’t wrong. She knew how crazy it sounded. Maybe she was just hoping for more than an outright dismissal. She opened the trunk at the front of the car and pulled out one of the many weapons she’d collected while she was aboard the ship.

“Here. I brought this back too.” She said, handing it carefully to Sarah. As Sarah inspected the Disintegrator, Butch leaned over to look at what else was in the trunk. Callie reached for one of the strange crystals and tossed one to Butch, who held it up to the light, but didn’t look any more convinced. Still, he pocketed the crystal and hit his hand against the car.

“So, when do we get to ride in this thing?” He asked, opening the back door.

“It’s not ready yet.” Callie said. “I still need to install the weapon rack, and the cooler-”

Sarah took another look at the trunk, then closed it. “If you’re worried about raiders, I can cover you.” She held up the disintegrator as she spoke, looking at it with interest.

Callie took a step backwards. “You.. both want to go for a ride? Right now?”

Sarah nodded. “Yeah. Besides, I have a feeling you might need some air.”

Callie bit her lip, thinking. Sarah wasn’t wrong. It had been days since she’d left the garage, and while she had enjoyed her new hobby, she had to admit she was feeling a little cooped up. “All right. Why not.” 

She walked to the front of the garage and heaved open the rusty metal garage door. She pulled the key fob from the front pocket of her cargo pants and sat down in the front seat. Butch sat behind her, as Sarah, still fully armored, carefully sat down next to Callie, holding the alien weapon on her lap.

The engine hummed to life, the low whir reminiscent of a large sentry bot. “Huh,” Butch remarked, “I thought it’d be louder.”

“Yeah, I had to work on it a bit. It’s better than it was.” Callie said. 

“Since when do you know how to work on a nuclear engine?” Butch asked, sounding genuinely curious.

“It’s been a learning experience.” Callie said, motioning with her head to one of the tables in the garage. It was covered with textbooks, and bits of scrap. Magazine clippings and diagrams of machinery were tacked to the wall. “But I’ve been studying the mechanics of nuclear shit since I turned off the bomb at Megaton, so it’s not like I started from scratch.”

Callie slowly maneuvered the car outside. Her driving experience was limited to the initial trip to the garage, and a few laps around the outside of it after she’d fixed the tires. They lurched forward occasionally, and although once she thought she heard a snicker of laughter from Butch, neither of her companions said a word.

She drove them a little ways away from the garage and up a nearby road. They were left alone up until they reached the top of a hill, where they surprised a super mutant camp.

Sarah stood up in her seat before Callie could do anything, and shot twice at a mutant who was reaching for a minigun. From Callie’s left, she heard another stomping towards them. She reached for the alien blaster she’d strapped to the inside of her car door. She easily took it out with four shots before it was able to swing the sledgehammer it carried. Butch also stood up, but there were only three mutants in the camp, and Sarah was already busy taking down the last of them.

Callie looked back at Butch and smiled. “Hey, remember when this used to be hard?” 

Butch glanced at Sarah before he sat down. “Nah, I’ve always been good at this.” He said with a smirk. Callie caught Sarah hiding a smile, but both women decided to let that statement go without comment.

“Every time I think we’ve cleared this area, they somehow find a way back here.” Sarah said with a sigh. She ran a hand over the length of the disintegrator and nodded her approval. “I like this thing.” 

With her passengers seated, Callie put the car in drive and found a spot to park at the top of the hill. It gave a good view of Rivet City, and now that the super mutants were gone they’d have plenty of notice if any trouble came their way.

“You were right, it was good to get outside.” Callie said. It was early spring, and the days were getting noticeably longer. The sun shone down over them as a few sparse clouds drifted overhead.

“It’s not like you to hide away like this.” Butch said from behind her, more gently than his usual tone.

Callie shrugged. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Sarah watching her with concern. She glanced in the rear view mirror and saw Butch with a similar expression. “I don’t know. It’s just been...” She said, trailing off as she tried to put her thoughts in order. After a moment she began again. 

“It’s just, everyone I meet knows who I am, and they all want the purifier story. And I get that it’s a good story, and I get how big of a deal it is to everybody, but what people want to hear about the most are... the parts I want to talk about the least.”

Callie swallowed hard and took another quick look in the rear view mirror to see if Butch was laughing at her. Instead he was looking at her thoughtfully.

“If you want we could change your hair. Get rid of the blue, or do something that makes you less noticeable.”

Callie shook her head. “No, I don’t want to do that.” She ran a hand through her blue hair. “It’s not that I want to hide, it’s just... easier? I don’t know. I don’t know how to tell people that I don’t want to talk about it without coming across as an asshole.”

Sarah nodded. “I was young when I lost my mom, but I remember strangers making a big deal out of telling me how sorry they were in front of my dad. I was just old enough to realize that for a lot of them, it was more about the performance of sympathy than any actual concern.”

“When my dad died, my mom wouldn’t let me talk about it at all.” Butch said. 

Callie looked back, surprised. “At all?” 

Butch shrugged. “She’d just get mad. Said we were ‘on our own’ and ‘talking about it don’t change nothin’.”

“Shit, man. That sucks.” Callie said.

Butch leaned back. “Yeah, I’ve been thinkin’, and I don’t think she was ever that great of a mom.”

Callie looked back over the city and frowned. “So... what? People are just assholes when it comes to grief?”

“Some of them. Not all.” Sarah said with an encouraging smile. “For better or for worse, there are a lot of people out here that think they know you because of your reputation. It makes them think they can talk to you like you’re old friends just because the last year of your life was broadcasted like a radio-play. You may have a lot of good, but you also went through hell. Publicly, and recently. It’s okay if you’re not over it, and you don’t owe anyone an explanation as to why you don’t want to talk about it.”

Callie nodded, staring out over the city. “I honestly don’t know if I’ll ever be over it.” She said quietly. 

Sarah nodded. “I’ve lost a lot of good people over the years, it comes with the job, and it’s hard, every single time. But my mom... that was like losing a limb. I’ll never forget it. It doesn’t feel the same now as it did then, but I still feel it.” She paused. “I don’t have an easy answer for you, but for now, remember that it’s okay to tell people “no.” Especially when they’re being, like you said, assholes.”

Callie nodded. “Thanks. Both of you.” 

They sat in silence for a little while, before Sarah shifted in her seat. “So, are you going to tell us the story you want to tell?” She asked.

“What story is that?”

Sarah looked at the car, then back to Callie. “The one about... where you got the car.”

Callie smiled, and looked back at Butch, who had a look on his face that Callie chose to interpret as reluctant support. She adjusted her seat so she could easily see both of them. “Okay, so there I was in Megaton, still reeling from the radiation...” she started, before launching into the full story of her abduction and takeover of Mothership Zeta. She talked for a long time, with fewer interruptions than she expected. 

“And then I had little Sally use the tractor beam and lower the Corvega down after me, and I was back.” Callie said. She took a deep breath, then looked between Sarah and Butch. They shot a look at each other, as if they were deciding who was going to speak first. 

Sarah cleared her throat. “So that Giddyup Buttercup that was in the infirmary when I woke up?”

“Was from the room with the other hundred of them, yeah. Are you’re saying you believe me?”

Sarah looked thoughtful. “It sounds very... unbelievable, but there are reports, sightings over the years that... corroborate with what you saw. You said a hundred? That’s a lot of good steel.”

“It’s a little out of your jurisdiction, don’t you think?”

“Callie, if there are resources that we can use, shouldn’t we use them? Do you have a way of contacting them? Of getting back there somehow?”

“No.” Callie lied. She could tell Sarah about the aliens, even drive her around, but she wouldn’t let the Brotherhood or anyone else just take whatever they wanted. There was too much power in that ship, and it was better off in Sally’s hands than anyone else’s, Callie hoped.

Sarah nodded, looking thoughtful. Callie looked back to Butch. He studied her for a long moment, then shrugged.

“You know what, sure. I’ve seen a lot of weird shit since I walked out of the vault. Why not aliens too?” Butch said, throwing up his hands dramatically.

Callie laughed, and felt a wave of relief wash over her. Skeptical belief was better than nothing. She put the car in gear and drove them back to the garage. She drove right in, not wanting to subject her friends to how bad she was at backing into a spot. She’d have to practice her driving, and if she had one of them sitting shotgun, it would make it a lot easier.

Once they were out of the car, Callie turned to face the others. “Look, I know I’ve been avoiding people, but it’s not like I’m just sitting out here feeling sorry for myself either. I’m proud of this thing, and once it’s ready... we’re going to have a lot of fun with it.”

Butch slapped her lightly on the arm. “Yeah, just come visit once in a while, huh? At least so I can touch up your roots.”

“I will.” She said, smiling at Butch, whose eyes were on her hairline.

“Seriously, when’s the last time you washed your hair?”

“Yeah, okay, I get the point.”

Sarah smiled, and shut the heavy garage door with one hand. “Do you guys want to go over to Gary’s for dinner? I’m buying.”

Callie considered the offer. “First tell me what you’re going to say to The Brotherhood.” 

Sarah paused. “I’m going to... confirm the report of an civilian automobile, but ensure that no further action is taken, given that the operator is a Brotherhood knight, and that the vehicle was obtained... beyond our jurisdiction.”

Callie nodded, and grinned at her friends. “Works for me.”


End file.
